Game details

Yakuza 6: The Song of Life is not the game I was expecting. The series’ newest numbered release (actually the seventh, after Yakuza 0) has long been billed as the swan song for longtime protagonist Kazuma Kiryu. As such I expected a celebration of the hero’s interpersonal relationships—those key moments of Yakuza storytelling that have propelled the series forward for more than a decade.

Strangely, though, Yakuza 6 feels like yet another solid, introductory jumping-on point after 2016’s prequel and last year’s remake of the first game. It opens with Kiryu enjoying another stint in prison; this time for three years. When he gets out, his adopted daughter is in a coma, his closest allies are in prison, and the Tojo Clan he once served is at war with an entirely new criminal faction. Without these direct ties to the past, Yakuza 6 feels like a fairly self-contained—if not exactly clean—tale of international criminal conspiracy.

I’ll be honest. I wasn’t thrilled about this de facto “reset” at first. Kiryu and company have carried Yakuza through six numbered games, three spin-offs, two full remakes, and a couple of movies. Much of that wealth of history is completely missing this time around. Where were Daigo, Haruka, and the kids from the Morning Glory orphanage? How could Sega send Kiryu off without resolving the violent sexual tension between him and Goro Majima?

Most of these characters make cameo appearances (or, as in Haruka’s case, are off-screen plot motivators) in Yakuza 6, but the vast majority of the game feels like a “normal” Yakuza title, not the cavalcade of fan service you might expect. After the first couple of hours, it becomes clear why. By cutting Kiryu off from his usual allies and resources, The Song of Life brings that smoldering, compassionate charisma of his to the surface.

Putting the “family” in “organized crime family”

The search for answers about his daughter’s condition—and the newborn son she left behind (gasp!)—soon takes our hero to a fictionalized version of Onomichi, Hiroshima. There he must win over a rural Yakuza family in typical Kazuma Kiryu fashion: by beating the crap out of them and their enemies.

But these manly displays of fist-fueled emotion only scratch the surface of what makes Kiryu tick. They’re gameplay excuses to crack the armor of the criminal bluster the Onomichi gang uses to protect their wounded souls. And The Song of Life sums up this theme more succinctly than any other Yakuza game.

Once the crap has been firmly cut through, that trademark Kazuma Kiryu empathy can slip in through earnest man-to-man heart-to-hearts. That’s what Kiryu fights for in the first place: not to create pawns who owe him or underlings who fear him but to widen and deepen his never-ending family of misfits.

That’s how Haruka became his daughter. That’s how Majima became his soulmate. Now, it’s how Yakuza 6’s largely brand-new cast becomes his latest band of brothers. And heaven help the circle of over-the-top villains who try to abuse those familial ties for their own greed. They get a whooping, too.

Repetitive but thrilling gameplay

The gameplay portion of these fights play out in equally typical Yakuza fashion: with a mix of light-light-heavy punch combos, occasional grappling, and by building up “Heat” to perform super moves. But Yakuza 6’s brand-new Dragon Engine shakes the formula up by, among other things, allowing greater freedom of movement.

In past Yakuza games, starting a fight usually locked you in a tiny arena. Now you’re free to run, snag improvised armaments, and change locales at will. That can lead to more of the series’ signature environmental and weapon takedowns (the aforementioned Heat-fueled super moves). Even if the animation never changes, I still never get tired of throwing opposing gangsters groin-first into telephone poles or arm-locking a man with a pair of chopsticks. But these added moments of flair also feel less necessary than ever before.

The Song of Life has the most forgiving combat of any Yakuza game I’ve yet played. Sometimes that feels like an almost objectively good thing. A lot of the series’ past “challenge” came from downright unfair boss fights, where overcharged enemies would just be immune to holds and finishing blows. Or maybe you’d spend a full minute rope-a-doping a stationary enemy with too much health who existed solely to block your path down a hallway. Not any more! Still, I might have preferred some deeper challenge to the combat, even if it was optional.

Yakuza 6 also changes up the way you earn and distribute experience points by splitting them into five different categories and tasking you to engage with different side content to earn them all. It’s a great reward for going out drinking, singing karaoke, or playing a fully functional Virtua Fighter cabinet in the arcade—in theory. But without big, obvious dragons to slay (like Yakuza 0’s towering Mr. Shakedown or the harder Majima Everywhere fights from Yakuza Kiwami) the gobs of XP don’t feel like much of a reward.

Melodrama and microdrama

Thankfully, then, the side activities are still well worth seeing for their own sake. Yakuza’s lovable “substories” are back and just as fancifully juxtaposed to the main story’s drama as ever. And if Yakuza 0 was a send-up of the booming '80s economy, this year’s satire centers on tech culture tchotchkes.

Kiryu’s time lost to prison is the perfect setup to start introducing the nearly 50-year-old grandfather to more modern “conveniences.” A marriage proposal involving a runaway Roomba, for instance, sports just the right mix of saccharin comedy and eye rolling. But my personal favorite side moment is probably the B plot where Kiryu stops a horny, vindictive Siri knock-off from taking over the world. Ongoing side activities also include running your own cat cafe and getting into real-time strategy gang wars with New Japan Pro Wrestling stars.

Put plainly, there’s a lot to do in Yakuza 6. If you boiled every activity down, few would technically qualify as more than fetch quests or the same light-light-heavy battles you engage with all over the game. But Yakuza is a franchise about what you do, not always how you do it. The joy is in discovering what wacky, soap opera-style twist Sega dreamed up this time. The magic is in wondering how the hell both wildly different tones fit so well together.

If Yakuza 6 has a weakness, it’s likely on the melodramatic end of things. The overarching story is fine but far less focused than the still-fresh prequel, Yakuza 0. What starts as a missing-persons mystery quickly spirals out of control. By the middle of the game, it’s all-out war between four major criminal organizations, a shady corporation, dirty politicians, and all the sub-factions underneath.

Things settle back into the relatable interpersonal stakes the series excels at but not before giving in to the series’ worst storytelling impulses just a little. One major villain too many is conveniently silenced by a mysterious gunman’s bullet, for instance. One (or perhaps two or three) too many women are used purely as plot devices with nothing close to the agency of literally every male character in the game. Yakuza desperately needs to crawl over this female characterization hump, but if anything it has regressed a bit by laying up the once-playable Haruka in a hospital bed for most of the game.

I make this look good

When it plays to its strengths, however, Yakuza 6 does justice to the muscle-bound big boys it lingers over. It’s electrifying when a boss’ name, title, and entire clan lineage slam on-screen as he and Kiryu fling themselves at each other in a slow-motion clash leading into a seamless camera twist starting a fight. And it remains electrifying every single time it happens. Simply put, no other game of this scale holds a candle to Yakuza on stylistic impact and consistency.

That sense of style goes beyond camera cuts and character models you can count every pore off of, too. One early scene sets the tone when Kiryu meets with an up-and-coming Yakuza looking to seize a top spot in the Tojo Clan. With just one line of dialogue and some stellar voice acting, the character both appeals to Kiryu’s vanity—addressing his once-legendary status in the organization—and makes a thinly veiled insult about his predecessor’s fading star. Kiryu, in response, says everything he needs to by saying nothing at all.

It’s a small, subtle kind of interaction, but those are sorely missing from many big-budget video games where spectacle seems so much more marketable. And Yakuza 6 manages to sneak these moments in constantly among the explosions of blood, sweat, raging emotions, and fighting spirit. It’s not the best blend of bombast and character drama the series has ever seen (that’s still Yakuza 0 for me), but it’s up there.

I expected something slightly different for Kazuma Kiryu’s closing chapter. I expected a look back at the tangled web of his life and the lives he’s drawn to himself over 30 fictional years. Instead, Yakuza 6 cuts through that web and down into the bone of the character—as well as the series itself.

The execution isn’t always perfect. After so many very similar games, maybe that proves Yakuza could use a total reset right about now. But this is still an appropriately larger-than-life send-off for a larger-than-life character who doesn’t lose sight of why he got that way in the first place.

The good:

Subtle, detailed storytelling blended well with bombast

Jumps between bizarre comedy and melodrama as smoothly as ever

Combat is hard-hitting and flashy

Incredible sense of style

Surprisingly decent jumping-on point for a long-running series

The bad:

Longtime fans will miss some familiar faces (Majima!)

Combat could be just a little more challenging

Twisting plot can be tough to follow

The ugly:

After so many Yakuza games, the developers still can’t write interesting female characters

Verdict: Yakuza 6 sums up its lead character succinctly and emotionally, while shaking up enough to make the return ride feel fresh. Buy it.

(Mostly?) Kidding! Thanks for the in-depth review. This game was not on my radar at all, but now I'll pick it up. Sounds fun!

I saw that this game was coming out, and it reminded me of how I had always heard good remarks about the Yakuza series... but I have never played any of them. With good reviews for this one, I decided to pick it up. Although, since I haven't played any others, it was good to see that Best Buy has Yakuza Kiwami (remake of Yakuza 1) for PS4 for $20 ($16 if you have Gamers Club Unlocked).

I only recently got into this series a month ago. My best friend and her wife played Yakuza 0, and bought me the game in March as a 3-month-early birthday present, basically as an attempt to force me to play it. They were also the ones that got me addicted to Final Fantasy XIV, so I basically play whatever they suggest without a second thought, assuming it'll be a good ride.

Yakuza 0 ended up being the most crazy fun piece of complete wacky bullshit I've ever experienced in my life, and it also surprised me to realize it was kind of the successor to Shenmue that I always wanted, but with some of the inanities sacrificed in exchange for more bombast.

So as you can imagine, I am SUPER EXCITED to get my hands on Yakuza 6, and am glad it's reviewing pretty well everywhere.

After so many Yakuza games, the developers still can’t write interesting female characters

FTFY.

(Mostly?) Kidding!

Seriously, thanks for the in-depth review. This game was not on my radar at all, but now I'll pick it up. Sounds fun!

Yeah same, it looks great and I haven't played any of the previous. I don't mean to be a dickbag, but isn't organized crime and especially the Yaukuza a largely male endeavor? We need more female role-models as inspiration for stories.(•_•) / ( •_•)>⌐■-■ / (⌐■_■)

Yakuza 0 ended up being the most crazy fun piece of complete wacky bullshit I've ever experienced in my life, and it also surprised me to realize it was kind of the successor to Shenmue that I always wanted, but with some of the inanities sacrificed in exchange for more bombast.

This is exactly why I got into Yakuza around 2 years ago, dusting off my PS3 to get the US releases of Yakuza 4 and 5.

Shenmue was an amazing game, with many flaws. Yakuza is basically Shenmue streamlined yet It even still has the nuance and style of shenmue. Things like being a taxi driver (yakuza 5?), a real estate mogul (Yakuza 0?) or even a japanese pop idol! It warms my heart that the ideas of shenmue didnt just evaporate and I am equality tickled that Yakuza 0, Kwami and now 6 are allowing more people experience the joy of a highly-detailed open world space.

Make one wonder, with Shenmue 3 coming out this year (2018), how much it will be influenced by Yakuza.

Also, slight digress: a Shenmue 1&2 remaster has been announced for PS4, Xbox One and PC (yes, PC!!!), also coming in 2018.

So, I've been intrigued by this series for some time, but never actually played one.If I have never dabbled, will I be lost in this? Will the story play out as comprehensible?

Start with Yakuza 0. Not only is it probably the best one of the series so far, it also helps explain who the hell all these characters are.

As a complete newcomer to the series I started with Zero, and man. It was great, for me one of the best games of last year. But especially when continuing to Kiwami (the remake of the first game) the characters involved had so much more depth to them. Had I started with Kiwami my opinion would have probably been "who are these people and why should I care?".

But while it'd seem like a natural progression, first play Zero and then Kiwami once you've finished the prequel, I'd advice against it. Take a little break in between. Kiwami is an inferior game in pretty much every aspect - not a bad game by any means, just that one cannot help but to compare to the other one if doing them back-to-back.

As to this, it's definitely on my shopping list. But not quite yet, I think/hope GoW will occupy me for some time.

So, I've been intrigued by this series for some time, but never actually played one.If I have never dabbled, will I be lost in this? Will the story play out as comprehensible?

Start with Yakuza 0. Not only is it probably the best one of the series so far, it also helps explain who the hell all these characters are.

Ah! yes, that was my concern, if the characters had a background that might make the game inscrutable w/o some sort of previous play.Advice noted, and I'll make that a priority for my next purchase. Thanks.(NOTE: surprisingly still a bit expensive! Hm!)

So, I've been intrigued by this series for some time, but never actually played one.If I have never dabbled, will I be lost in this? Will the story play out as comprehensible?

The main plot is pretty comprehensible, even if you've never played a Yakuza game. It mostly involves new factions and characters. Although a lot of the emotional/thematic beats will hit harder if you, say, play Yakuza 0 and/or Kiwami.

Sega also includes a written synopsis of every Yakuza game before this one that you can check out from the main menu.

And, as the Wikipedia article states, Onomichi is indeed home to some real-life yakuza.

I don’t doubt the game’s representation of the place is at least somewhat fictionalized, however.

Good catch. I must have just assumed it was fictional without thinking, since the other Yakuza games all use fictional locations only based on real places.

Heck even the streets in Kabukicho has semblance to actual Kahukicho in Tokyo. There is a spot where I used to visit ALOT when I was in Tokyo that looks identical; including the stairs that led up to the place.

I've been binging on Yakuza lately. Bought Y0 off PSN when there was a preorder bundle for both it and Y6 together for a decent price. Beat that, beat Kiwami, now I want more Kiryu-chan in my life. Uncle Kaz has had it rough, but I'm sure he'll find a way to make things right.

The game does a good enough job introducing the characters from the games I didn't play that I am not lost early on, having not played Yakuza 2-5. Just enough of a backstory on what the characters mean to Kiryu and obvious reasons why you should care about them, enough to get the ball rolling.

I've been binging on Yakuza lately. Bought Y0 off PSN when there was a preorder bundle for both it and Y6 together for a decent price. Beat that, beat Kiwami, now I want more Kiryu-chan in my life. Uncle Kaz has had it rough, but I'm sure he'll find a way to make things right.

The game does a good enough job introducing the characters from the games I didn't play that I am not lost early on, having not played Yakuza 2-5. Just enough of a backstory on what the characters mean to Kiryu and obvious reasons why you should care about them, enough to get the ball rolling.

Just in case you didn't know, Kiwami 2 (remake of the second game) is releasing worldwide August 28th, so you can play that too without needing older hardware/emulation.

So, I've been intrigued by this series for some time, but never actually played one.If I have never dabbled, will I be lost in this? Will the story play out as comprehensible?

Start with Yakuza 0. Not only is it probably the best one of the series so far, it also helps explain who the hell all these characters are.

As a complete newcomer to the series I started with Zero, and man. It was great, for me one of the best games of last year. But especially when continuing to Kiwami (the remake of the first game) the characters involved had so much more depth to them. Had I started with Kiwami my opinion would have probably been "who are these people and why should I care?".

But while it'd seem like a natural progression, first play Zero and then Kiwami once you've finished the prequel, I'd advice against it. Take a little break in between. Kiwami is an inferior game in pretty much every aspect - not a bad game by any means, just that one cannot help but to compare to the other one if doing them back-to-back.

As to this, it's definitely on my shopping list. But not quite yet, I think/hope GoW will occupy me for some time.

I'd even go as far as to say to play Kiwami first, because playing it after Zero might have a negative impact on your opinion. Kiwami is a remake that stays pretty true to the first game (they only added a few side missions, Majima Everywhere, side activities and some improvements to gameplay) which while a fun game was limited in scope, story, humour, surroundings etc. So it will always feel like a step back. But if you play Kiwami first and then Zero you will find out why people are the way they were in Kiwami and you get a feeling for when you play the later games in the Yakuza series which are way more open and have a lot more wacky stuff going on.There is a thing to say for both ways to play it, but I played Kiwami and then Zero and was happy that I did, I think I would have had a hard time to finish Kiwami had I started with Zero.

Then again I played Yakuza 3, 4 and 5 while I missed out on the earlier games when they came out. So I was already invested in the characters and always felt the games were interesting even if I had no idea who some of the people were. They do a good job of building a stand alone story in all games.As I stated before I feel Kiwami is a great game, but because it is a remake of the first ever game it feels very limited especially compared to Zero/later games. So it might be best to "get it out of the way" first.